On Second Thought --

Actually, I DO have something to say about that "c-string" bikini thing, and that would be, simply, "WHY?"

Why bother?  If we have come to this:  micro-bits of clothing intended to emphasize (rather than conceal) the body parts that we have customarily kept out of sight, then we have come to the point of foolishness.  Let us, as a culture, just admit that our goal is to put genitals out in plain sight, and then do that.  Leave the coy, peek-a-boo nonsense behind, grow up, and just let everyone who wants to do so go naked.

I do not object to visible body parts.  The human body is not at all shameful, and there is no reason, beyond culturally imprinted prudishness (or religious practice), to hide the fact that we are male and female.  If we do not value modesty, and a cursory perusal of our music, our movies, our advertising, our sidewalks and public places would indicate that we do not, then let's just stop playing this game of sartorial chicken.  I am pretty sure that I'd be more comfortable with simple, honest, straightforward public nudity, than I am with the intentional application of pseudo-clothing that is intended to scream, "LOOK everyone, I have a vagina/penis."  Since the anatomical reality of that statement is pretty much a given, the whole business is clearly about adolescent attention getting behavior.  For my money, if you are wanting everyone to notice your man bits or lady parts, then just put 'em out there, and let's all take a good look.  Maybe then, we would all finally come to understand that anatomy does not equal sex.

Poopie Caves

Here we go -- another post that has nothing to do with spanking or BDSM, or any of the other "juicy" and "salacious" stuff that you can sometimes read here.  I know ... it is just that I am home today, feeling crummy with some sort of icky stomach bug (probably shared with me by one of my darling students), and I have lots of time on my hands.

We have, as you may be aware, two feline creatures:  Callie, the old lady house cat, and Moobie, the magical summer kitten.  I know that some of you are cat people, so you will get it when I tell you that having two cats in the same house presents challenges.  Our crotchety old lady is not at all happy with our new addition, and while the household is not a war zone, the truce that reigns is not exactly peaceful either.

Early on, when we were first acquired by Moobie, it became very clear, very fast, that the two cats would not happily or nicely share a litter box.  It was also obvious that Callie was going to bolt from her litter box anytime that the little one bounced into view -- and the kitten just couldn't resist the urge to tackle Callie in the litter box.  Chaos!

I figured that things might be better if I could find a litter box that would give Callie some privacy where she would not be ambushed easily.  I found what seemed to be a great solution (although not an inexpensive one) at the local Petsmart, and so brought home for Callie the Cadillac of all kitty litter boxes -- The Booda Dome, or what has come to be referred to around here as The Poopie Cave:

The Booda Dome, works to give the cat privacy, and the steps help to prevent litter tracking.  It has a charcoal filter in the top and does a pretty good job of containing the smells.  Nice unit.  Big, but nice.  Callie was happy, and it seemed that all was right with the world, until Moobie fell in love with the thing and decided she liked it better than her kitten-sized litter pan.  Within days, the kitten had acquired the grand Poopie Cave, and Callie was contemplating turning the whole house into her own personal litter box.

So, I hauled myself off to the Petsmart, and bought another one.  Hence, we now have two Poopie Caves.  Tah Dah!  Happy cats.  They are a wonder, and I really like them -- now if someone could help me figure out an easy way to clean these behemoths...  Please.

swan

Elite Seat -- A Rant

This post will have nothing at all to do with anything related to spanking or BDSM or any of the things that people come here to read.  So there's the disclaimer.

This post is a rant about a product that was supposed to help with the last bit of straightening on Tom's knee replacement -- a product manufactured by Kneebourne Therapeutic called Elite Seat.  It is likely that most of you will never encounter this beast.  It is, from all I can tell, a very specialized piece of equipment used mostly by physical therapists and sports medicine types...

The device is meant to help straighten the knee when it is bent due to muscle contracture or some other sort of orthopaedic injury or deformity.  In Tom's case, after the successful completion of his surgery, and after months of regular and intensive physical therapy, his affected knee still was not at zero degrees -- not straight.  He achieved great flexion, well over the 120 degrees that is considered successful after knee replacement, but never managed to get the leg straighter than about 3 or 4 degrees.  Being less than totally straight can lead to ongoing pain, and can also cause unwanted wear on the prosthesis.  Straight isn't just a cosmetic plus, it is a medical necessity.

When all the good efforts of a very good physical therapist, and all of Tom's hard work failed to get that knee all the way to straight, the PT recommended the Elite Seat.  It is a fairly simple, light weight, and portable contraption that exerts a (patient-controlled) stretch on the knee joint.  The goal is to, over time, correct the contraction in the muscles and allow the joint to straighten.  Using it requires several 10-15 minute sessions a day.  It is "out of network" for our insurance, and so when He made the initial arrangements for the device, He was told that the company would take what the insurance would pay, and our portion would be a one time, prepaid charge of $400 -- 20% of the monthly rental cost.  The rental term, He was told was unspecified -- "keep it as long as you need it."  We paid that $400 and the Elite Seat was shipped to our home.  He's had it about a month.

Today, He got a phone call from the someone named Brandy, representing the supplier -- the selfsame Brandy who had sold Him on the darned thing to begin with.  It turns out that, today, Brandy has a very different story to tell about the financial arrangements regarding to the rental of the Elite Seat.  Today, the story is that there is a MONTHLY $400 rental charge, and nevermind what you were or were not told at the outset, that is just the way it is.  Suck it up and send us the money.

It is the worst kind of durable medical equipment scam; a completely fraudulent business practice.  He is working to get some sort of resolution from the company -- seemingly three people doing business as both Kneebourne Therapeutic and AKT Medical.  Both use the same phone number, and both are located at the same address in Noblesville, Indiana.  Right now, the "business manager" is purportedly reviewing His file and has promised to call Him back.  If that call does not come fairly soon with some sort of reasonable resolution to this mess, I imagine that there will be phone calls to the Better Business Bureau, and the fraud unit of the state government.  What a mess!  I am sure that no one who reads here will ever encounter this company, or need this piece of equipment.  I sincerely hope not.  Still, this is the forum that I can use to vent about this rotten company.  It won't make any difference, but thank you all for being willing to listen.

swan

This is What I Do!

Some "person" over at kaya's left this comment, and try as I might, I just cannot shake the place where it chaps my hide... My father, curmudgeonly old so and so that he was, said the same thing all my life. It never stopped me from wanting to teach. As long as I've been teaching, I've heard uninformed and arrogant people who wouldn't survive two hours in a busy classroom (let alone make a success of it for the kids that were given into their care) spout that nonsense. I've had it. I understand that there are lousy teachers out there -- people who should never be allowed near a classroom or a child who is trying to learn. But the same can be said for people in every occupation. There are lousy doctors, lawyers, plumbers, accountants, politicians -- you name it, and you can find someone who sucks at doing it. I believe that this ignorant comment gets made because the perception is that teachers make less than they could "out in the corporate world" applying their knowledge there (if they were any good). You know what? That's true. I worked in corporate America for 17 years before I made the move to teaching. I made a six-figure income, and I gave it up and left it behind so that I COULD do what I'd always dreamed of, and teach. I wanted to not just make money -- I wanted to make a difference. I'll never, ever make the kind of money that I once did, because we don't value teachers the way we do other things. But that's the choice our society makes. Anyway, school starts in again in a few weeks and, I'm OVER it with the sluggo's of the world... but I'm not nearly as eloquent about it as this guy... Check it out. He speaks for so many of us who labor in classrooms to MAKE something really valuable:

YouTube -- What Teacher's Really Make

swan